If you’re in a hurry today, please scroll to the bottom . . . PRIZES! If you’re ready to settle in for a long read, get on with your bad self.

Thuh Announcement

As I talked about in THIS post . . . after writing this blog for 8 years, I’ve decided it’s time to take it to the next level. And what better time to make the announcement and share my over-the-top excitement than on interNational Scrapbook Day?!?

So what I’ve been wanting to tell you is:

– Scrapbook Obsession Blog will continue providing scrapbook industry news and gossip, enabling, Deals & Steals, etc. but will be more active, with posts more often!

– A NEW free Scrapbook Obsession Newsletter will be delivered to your inbox with special deals, fun stuff that won’t be on the blog, and all the news that’s fit to print (and maybe some that’s not? heh).

– There will be two NEW Scrapbook Obsession Memberships, both Free and Paid, where (depending on your level) you can enjoy things like exclusive content, a members forum and community, free and paid classes, interviews with people YOU want to hear from, and more! As a Paid Member, you’ll have some pretty special perks that I know you’re going to love.

– And, finally, did you notice the new item in the right sidebar? -> It’s a Pinterest board highlighting a new site I’ve started called “Organized Scrapbooking” where you can be inspired by organized crafting & scrapping spaces, research how to organize specific crafting items, receive special offers, and then some. (Sorry, I didn’t want to say “and more!” again). If nothing else, go visit it today and see the Papermint entry; it will blow. your mind.

How About Some Background?

As I mentioned in the other post, I’ve been wanting to elevate things around here for a long time. I’ve recently been blessed by the most amazing experience: I attended on online business school called “Marie Forleo’s B School.” I was taught how to be a responsible and resourceful online entrepreneur.

I learned that you need to ‘start the right business’ and, as I completed the exercises in that module, I took ownership of the fact that I want to devote my time and resources to this industry and hobby that I love so much: scrapbooking. There’s no reason to start a business from scratch when I already have everything I want and need to get started right here :)

Is it crazy to start a business around the (ahem, declining) scrapbooking industry? Some might say! {Not that I care about the Negative Nellies. Do you?} But I have faith that there are still tons of obsessed scrapbookers out there who want to talk and learn about their beloved hobby, and new scrapbookers who will find their way to us if we provide what they need.

So that’s what I’m going to do. I’m so excited and hope you are, too!

Idea Overload

During the 8-week course of business school, I couldn’t stop the ideas from forming … oh, the things I want to share with you! It’s just massive, peeps. In fact, I had to start using a task manager called Things for Mac to keep track of all the ideas flying out of my head (well, there’s a visual!).

I want to be the first place you visit when you think of scrapbooking. I want to create classes you need but can’t find elsewhere, provide a community where you feel completely at home, and make a difference in the scrapbooking industry. We’re going to have so much fun! One thing that won’t change is my wish to make you laugh. Like, ’til you snork coffee out your nose and your dog looks at you like, “Guuurrrl. What is UP with YOU?”. Ohhh . . . is it only my mine that gives the doggy evil eye? Hmm.

What’s Next?

I’ve found an amazing online platform with which to provide you all this content. It’ll be hosted off-site but with super easy access and links from right here. Everything will originate from that one place – the newsletter, classes, membership site, forum, etc. – so I’m hoping that’ll cut down/eliminate any technical snafus that can happen when you kind of piecemeal all these things together electronically. Speaking of technical snaufus, this site was down for 2 days this week (did ya’ miss me?) because a plug-in I wanted to try wasn’t playing nice with WordPress (the blogging software). That’s the kind of stuff I have ZERO talent or patience for, so I think it’s best to host all the new shizzle off-site.

If you want to play along – in any capacity – your first step would be to sign up for the Free Newsletter. I want to keep Scrapbook Obsession Blog pretty much as it is and not flood it with that content, which is separate and different (in a good way, promise!). The newsletter is how I’ll keep you up-to-date on all the haps and stuff. I would never dream of selling your e-mail address (just so ya’ know!); I appreciate the trust you show when you share it with me too much. Besides, I like the idea of talking directly to you – and I encourage you to write me back. Ooooh, that way we can be SBFF’s and have SECRETS!! LOL

To you lovelies who already get my blog entries via e-mail, the newsletter is something NEW and you’ll need to sign up for it separately, please.

Did somebody say PRIZES?

Sign up for the free Scrapbook Obsession Newsletter by Sunday night and I’ll pick 3 lucky scrappers to receive a $10 gift card of their choice! Amazon, Starbucks, Target, Michaels, or any store you like – as long as I can find the card locally and mail it to ya’, or I can purchase it online for you. Even your local scrapbook store if you like! You must sign up for the newsletter by Sunday 05-03-15 at midnight PST. Winners will be announced – in said newsletter, ha! – within 1 week.

“I don’t know . . . I don’t think I want to sign up for a FREE newsletter AND get a chance to win $10 for anything I want.” Said nobody.

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I’ll be rolling out the Free and Paid Membership programs soon! Updates will be in the Newsletter ;) Thank you for all the support you’ve given me in this new endeavor. I truly appreciate it!

PS: There’s a Newletter sign up in the top right sidebar too.
PSS: Please tell your friends! Share this blog on Twitter, Facebook, your blog, etc. Help me get the word out – I need you! There are social sharing buttons at the top and bottom of this blog entry. Thank you, friend 😘

I don’t usually get too personal on this blog. It’s not a site about MY scrapbooking. It’s a site about SCRAPBOOKING. That’s how it’s been from the beginning and the way I want it to always stay. I want to be different from all the other scrapbook blogs out there. I want to be a place where we talk – not about my life, my scrapbooking, my photos, my family – but about this obsession called Scrapbooking.

The other component I believe in is being honest and transparent. I tell you my real opinion on scrapbooking topics, products, companies, “celebrities”, etc. And if I don’t have something nice to say, I try to keep my mouth shut, LOL. Unless I can be constructive :)

Even though the title of this post says “things are changing,” I want you to know that the plan is for this site to stay about scrapbooking and stay about honesty. That’s not going to change. What I hope IS going to change is that Scrapbook Obsession is going to become bigger and better and more fun throughout the rest of 2015 … and beyond.

I’ve been wanting to build this site up for SO many years. I’ve had plans in the past for various things that either didn’t work out or I had to abandon due to constraints on my time. I’ve also let fear hold me back: Fear that I’ll disappoint you, fear that because I’m not a fancy scrapper that I have nothing to offer, fear that I’ll drive away people who’ve been so supportive of this blog. But I’ve felt from the beginning that 2015 was going to be an awesome year and it sure is turning out to be.

Over the years, I’ve watched amazing women in this industry build their online, at-home scrapbooking businesses – Becky Higgins, Ali Edwards, Lain Ehmann to name a few – and been SO inspired. But I’ve always thought they had something special I didn’t, that they were doing something I could never do, that they knew some secret I didn’t for making their dreams come true.

While I still don’t think I’ll ever be running a million dollar company like BeckyHiggins.com, I’ve come to realize that I CAN do big things. I can take this love of scrapbooking further – via this site i’ve been building for 8 years – and I can turn this passion into a business I love without “selling out” or letting you down or becoming some fake thing you don’t recognize.

The main thing that’s changed my attitude is that I’ve been attending an online business school. It’s geared toward female entrepreneurs who want to dream big and run online businesses. The education I’m getting has opened my eyes wide and also opened many doors. It’s all very exciting! The other women who attend are extremely encouraging, helpful, and we all cheer each other on. I’m using the teachings to improve and expand my virtual assistant business but I’m also going to apply these wonderful things to Scrapbook Obsession.

Business school has expanded my beliefs about all the things I have to offer, what makes my site unique, what a difference I can make, and has me so stinkin’ jacked up, I can hardly stand it! Finding time is still a challenge but I’m making it happen. Changes will roll out slowly as I can implement them but I have self-imposed deadlines I plan to meet. Wish me luck.

Hint: One of those deadlines is National Scrapbook Day 05-02-15 … yikes, not very far away!

I’m a reader, writer, scrapbooker, creative type. I gotta’ tell ya’, the technical side of all this online biz stuff is challenging! But I’m stubborn and will figure out whatever I need to. In the meantime, it might not be pretty but don’t worry. It’ll all be good in the end :P

And back to the fear thing: One thing I’ve learned in business school is that I can’t make everyone happy. “If you try to make everyone happy, you end up pleasing no one.” We all like different things and different aspects of scrapbooking. We all want different things from the sites we choose to spend time on. But I’ve come to realize that I can’t make “people” happy, I can only make “my people” happy. My people, my tribe, the scrappers who think like I think and like what I like. I do feel badly that I can’t cater to EVERY kind of scrapper but I also feel very blessed to have offerings for MY kind of scrapper. That’s all one person can do, right?

This new venture is going to require me to do something I’m not comfortable with: Asking for help. I’ll need to reach out to members of the scrapbooking industry and ask for things that they may or may not be willing to give. That’s scary! But, like mama always said, “If you don’t ask, you’ll never know!” Time to put on my Big Girl Scrapper Panties and get ready for rejection! And – maybe just maybe – some pleasant surprises, too. I’ll also need to ask some of you to help me behind the scenes so I can make this site super useful for you.

What I ask of each reader is to be open-minded, be excited, and join me on the journey!! It’s gonna’ be fun, I promise ;)

So what if it’s Sunday Night when I’m finally getting around to publishing my Friday Night Randoms? Who wants to be on schedule? Not me. That is so cliche and expected….and I’m anything but cliche and expected. For shizzle.

~~ Speaking of shizzle….if you ever need a translator for when I speak Snoop Dog, HERE YA GO. Bladizzle.

~~ A bunch of (22!) First Day of School scrapbook page ideas are HERE, provided by Scrapbooks Etc. I think this one is my fave, but I loved them all…

~~ There is a wonderful discussion of why the Peas think the scrapbook industry has tanked HERE. And a related ARTICLE on SCRAPBOOK UPDATE called “Is Scrapbooking Fading….Or not?,” is asking for your thoughts so go chime in, why don’t ya? I think many “industry folks” read that website so let them hear from you. I scored the first Comment ~ yeah! Guess sometimes it pays to be up blogging in the middle of the night, lol. Anyway, if you’d like to read my ever so humble opinion on the whole thing, click on over to the Scrapbook Update article … I wrote a novel … or at least a chapter ;)

~~ Remember when I said that my Michaels wasn’t going to be putting ads in Sunday paper flyers anymore? {It was HERE}. The cashier had given me a flyer and everything, saying that Sunday flyers would be no more, and that I could get my flyers and coupons online from now on. But here it is 6 weeks later….and I’m still getting Michaels ads in my paper on Sunday. What up with that? I dunno’, you got me. Guess they changed their minds…

~~ According to the GOLLYG at 2peas, ROSS has some scrapbooking stuff again: “Enabling Alert! I stopped by Ross today and they have tons of new scrapbook stuff. They had Making Memories paper kits for $2.99, American Crafts paper pads $5.99, K&Company Stuff, and lots more!” Also, rumors of Disney scrapbooks….read the thread HERE. I used to find 12×12 postbound albums there all the time, but nothing scrappy in ages. But what do you know, there is a Ross store smack dab between my Target and my Michaels. I happen to be headed to Target for prescriptions tomorrow, so I’ll check out Ross and let you know if I find anything.

The owner of Creative Memories has filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy and has reached an agreement with its lenders to restructure its debt, according to a company statement. The Antioch Co. and six of its subsidiaries today filed voluntary petitions for Chapter 11 protection with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of Ohio. Chapter 11 allows a company to stay in business while it reorganizes its finances.

The company said it will continue operating and doesn’t anticipate “any reduction in employee headcount or changes in operating facility locations,” according to a statement released through a New York-based public relations agency. Calls made to Creative Memories today were not immediately returned.”

And here’s just a portion of one article I’d like to share with you:

“After completing a comprehensive strategic review of the business, The Antioch Company, with the guidance of industry experts and turnaround specialists, determined that a pre-packaged filing was in the best interest of the future of Creative Memories,” said Asha Morgan Moran, global president of Creative Memories.

Can I just get a little “tee hee” about her name?

And another side track: THIS link has nothing to do with their current situation, but I came across this book preview when I was searching for info for this post. Just some interesting reading, if ya have the time…As someone who has been in the scrapbooking business here and there, I would enjoy reading about how those ladies built such a successful company. Think I’ll put this book on my Christmas list…

After I wrote this post, I saw that THE PEAS are already talking about it, too. Nothing escapes those gals!

I assume this development doesn’t surprise anyone? Creative Memories has had it’s share of ups and downs lately, and this devastating economy is being kind to no one. For the sake of their remaining employees, dedicated consultants, and loyal customers, I hope the restructuring plan is approved and goes well for all involved. Good luck, CM!

And your thoughts?

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